Obsidian

The night sky blanketed the north, bringing silver light to the world below as the moon rose within the sky. Stars gently shined beside it, decorating the darkness with beauty. Trees softly whispered as the wind raced through them, shaking their dying leaves to the ground. Chipmunks and squirrels scurried along, collecting food for the oncoming winter months. The rivers were empty of fish as they swam south, seeking warmer waters. Birds were silent, along with the crickets that would chirp throughout the night. It would almost be peaceful—if screams weren't cutting through the silence. 

A small boy huddled in the corner, his eyes wide as he watched the man before him torture a rogue. He wanted to tell his father to stop, but he had learned the consequences of interrupting his father's work. 

"Darling, come here, I don't want you watching this."

The boy bolted to his mother as her arms wrapped around him, shielding him from the violence. 

His father spun around, glaring at them. "Crystal, you know you're not allowed down here."

"I know, but he shouldn't be here. He's only five years old."

"He needs to see what alphas are supposed to do when a mutt runs onto his territory."

 Crystal's eyes sparked with anger, "Torture isn't what a true alpha is supposed to do."

 "Don't challenge me, whore."

 "Mama..."

Glancing down, she instantly relaxed and lifted the boy into her arms. She gently placed a kiss on his temple while whispering loving words into his ear. She gave her husband a hateful stare before turning her back to him, angering him even more. Before she could step foot out of the cell, he yanked her back by her hair. Her son screamed. They both tumbled to the ground, his elbow scraping against the rock. 

"Don't you dare turn your back on me!" 

"MAMA!"

 "Alpha?"

Snapping out of his memories, he acknowledged his beta. "Yes?"

"You received an invitation."

"Sylvia! Darling, where is that dress I laid out for you?"

Flipping the last strand of curled hair back from my face, I looked up with an innocent stare. "What dress?"

My mother placed her hands on her hips, giving me the mom stare that always sent chills through me. Groaning, I motioned towards my closet, where I had hidden the red dress. She mumbled a few cuss words as she stormed over and yanked the doors open, grinning when she found the crimson nightmare hidden in the back. 

"I don't get why you dislike it, it's gorgeous!" She exclaimed as she held it up.

I frowned. "I don't dislike it, it's just.... it's a sexy dress. Not my typical ball gown."

"Yes, well, you're eighteen now, your style needs an update."

"Since when do princesses not wear ball gowns?"

She rolled her eyes, "Since you became a young woman. Ball gowns are for young princesses." 

"You're just doing this to find me a mate, so I don't have to deal with others questioning me as a single ruler."

Sighing, my mother pulled a chair beside me, "That too. Honey, male werewolves are always seeking power, and if you're a single queen, they will kill each other just to be your mate. Not only that, but they could possibly challenge you for the title."

"I can easily defeat them."

"Yes, the ones in our kingdom."

"That other kingdom won't be a problem."

My mother raised an eyebrow, "You've never fought anyone from there."

"Yes, I did. Remember Ryder? I destroyed him."

"Because you lost control and shifted. While your wolf is a force to be reckoned with, you yourself need more practice."

I finished clipping my hair back and turned to face my mom, "Because my wolf is an alpha wolf, which is rare for a female. It's hard to control that half of me."

"I know, sweetie, and we'll work on it with you. But I don't want you allowing it to make you blind to who you can and cannot handle. Now, finish getting ready. We can discuss this later tonight after the party."

"Why are we having a party again? Especially with them?"

"Because they're discussing a treaty tonight, we need to stop the wars so we can focus on the real enemy."

"The hunters? They're just humans, I thought grandfather finished that a long time ago."

My mother shook her head, "So did we." 

~*~

"You look gorgeous!"

I pouted at my gushing friend, hating how beautiful everyone thought I looked. I'm not one to express her confidence in her looks. I'd rather hide in a hoodie and sweatpants, but that isn't allowed for someone of my title. Being a princess isn't what everyone seems to believe. I don't get to do whatever I want. I must train, take my lessons, attend meetings, meet everyone in the kingdom daily, and so many other duties. I rarely have any time to myself to just go for a run in the forest, much to my parents' dismay. We constantly have guards patrolling the borders, making sure no rogues or other packs can get in. 

"I don't want to be here," I grumbled.

She rolled her eyes, "Will you allow yourself to enjoy a ball for once in your life?" 

"How can I enjoy it when our enemy is joining us? They murdered so many from our kingdom, including my grandparents."

"I know, but don't let them ruin your fun. Just ignore anyone from that kingdom. Besides...I doubt every single one of them is as evil as the others make them out to be. I mean, I know the king is a dick." 

"Thanks Lin, "I chuckled. 

She grinned, "No need to thank me, I'm just being the amazing friend that I always am."

"Mhm, except for when your crush shows up and you suddenly forget how to speak English."

"It was one time, you know French is my first language!" 

 I laughed, "I know, but it was still hilarious."

"Oh, shut up." 

"Speaking of which, here comes Brayden." 

"What! l'enfer non, il ne peut pas me voir!"

And here she goes again. 

I shook my head in amusement before something caught my eye. I furrowed my eyebrows at him, trying to figure out if I'd ever seen him before. He was quite handsome—tall, olive skin, dark hair—and it seemed like he had lighter colored eyes. He was too far for me to know for sure, but they were surely not brown. 

"What are you drooling at?"

Lin's voice dragged me from my thoughts as I blinked, "Who is he? Have we seen him before?"

She studied the man for a moment, "No, I haven't ever seen him. But damn is he hot."

"He seems like someone who shouldn't be messed with."

"That's because he isn't to be messed with. That's King Obsidian," my father suddenly spoke.

I jumped a little, "Do you always have to be so quiet?"

"Sorry, I'm used to it after needing to tiptoe to steal your mom's ice cream at night."

"What?"

"Nothing. Anyway, he's a very quiet man, but he's got the shortest temper I have ever seen." 

 I frowned, "He's the one who killed grandfather and grandmother?"

"No, that was his father, but he isn't much different."

I tilted my head as I watched him. It was crazy that someone so dangerous could seem so harmless. He acted like a shy schoolboy, barely speaking to anyone for long and basically hiding from people. Pursing my lips, I decided to introduce myself. If I'm going to be queen someday, I need to get to know my enemies. After all, you should keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. That way, it's easier to keep an eye on them. 

Plastering on a smile, I walked straight up to him, almost spooking the poor guy. His eyes darkened with annoyance, but I easily ignored it. I held out my hand, "Good evening, I'm Sylvia."

He looked at my hand then my face, "I don't care."

"That's nice," I retorted, causing his friend to cough on his drink. "Anyways, you're from that kingdom that's in North America, right?"

 He narrowed his eyes, "Yes."

"Are you going to tell me your name or stare at me like a deer in the headlights?"

"Obsidian." 

"Well, it's.... nice to meet you, Obsidian." 

 His friend grinned, "You hesitated."

"Well, it's difficult to lie sometimes."

Obsidian rolled his eyes, "Go away." 

"Excuse me? I haven't met your friend yet."

The man beside him laughed, "The name is Malachi, I'm this idiot's beta." 

"Oh, so Obsidian is your alpha?"

"That's right, he's our king."

I raised an eyebrow, "He's a rather quiet king."

"Yeah, he's always like this. Anyways, what is your title?"

"Probably an omega," Obsidian mumbled.

"Oh, he has jokes," I teased. "No, I'm the king's daughter."

"Ah, you're the princess. So, have you picked a future king yet? I'm available if you haven't," Malachi grinned.

Letting out a laugh, I shook my head. "No, I don't plan on choosing anyone anytime soon. I'm waiting for the right guy to come along. So, is your kingdom as dark as everyone says?"

He shook his head, "We're really not all that evil, a lot has changed since—

"Malachi, that's enough," Obsidian growled, quickly silencing his beta.

Malachi nodded, "Anyway...will you be attending the meeting?"

"I'm stepping out for this one, I'm in charge of making sure everyone is on their best behavior here," I replied, eyeing Obsidian. 

He silently continued sipping on his drink as he seemed to study everyone in the room. Through his suit, I could see he was extremely tense, as if he were expecting someone to attack him. His eyes flickered between each wolf in the room, sometimes narrowing in confusion when someone did something odd. I wanted to laugh, but I couldn't pull myself away from him. Something about him was intriguing, he didn't seem anything like an evil king. I silently began to wonder if his mate was anything like him or if she was the complete opposite. 

"So, where's your queen?" I asked, trying to learn more about this stubborn man.

Malachi chuckled, "We don't have one. He doesn't like the idea of love, apparently."

Obsidian sighed as he turned towards us, "Will you quit telling her my life story? Princess Sylvia, if you don't mind, I'd like for you to leave. After all, our kingdoms aren't friends." 

"Oh, I know that. I need to get to know my enemies, especially if I am going to kill you someday," I said sweetly. "But I guess I can dismiss myself, I have much more important people to see. It was a pleasure to meet you, Malachi." 

"And the same to you, Princess." 

I bowed before turning away, smiling to myself. He may be a big and bad scary Alpha, but he doesn't seem to have thick skin. It was so easy for me to bother him, even without talking directly to him. I think I'm going to enjoy getting to know my enemy.